Tubular Flexible Weapon Cover and Field Method of Making the Same

ABSTRACT

A protective cover for weapons made of a lightweight, compactable, elastomeric tube which resists moisture and environmental debris. The cover is held in place on the barrel by the elasticity of the tube itself, and/or means for cinching the ends of the tube to the weapon. The cover may contain slits to allow connection of various attachments. Also disclosed is a method of making the protective cover from a sock.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a protective covering device for weapons andmore particularly to a new elastomeric tubular cover which helps keepthe weapon clean and protected while being used, stored and transported.It is particularly well suited for soldiers in the field.

DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART

Covers for weapons are well known in the art. Some covers serve safetyfunctions by protecting the user or bystanders from accidental firings.Other covers are designed to protect the weapon itself.

Some weapon covers protect the weapon by enclosing the weapon within ahardened exterior. (U.S. Pat. No. 5,669,495 to West). These types ofcovers are generally useful for transporting weapons where size orweight of covered weapon is not a factor. Other weapon covers protectthe weapon by surrounding it in flexible material.

Flexible covers are typically a bag or pouch. (U.S. Pat. No. 6,722,496B2 to Gantert, U.S. Pat. No. 6,253,915 B1 to Mesica et al., U.S. Pat.No. 6,119,388 to Jones et al., U.S. Pat. No. 3,540,508 to Couch and U.S.Pat. No. 3,701,371 to Stackhouse). Flexible bags or pouches are usefulin that they protect the weapon and are less cumbersome in the fieldthan a case with a hardened case. However, bags and pouches still addweigh, require space, and typically must be removed prior to using theweapon.

Finally, there are various devices which enclose and protect onlyportions of the weapon. (U.S. Pat. No. 4,860,479 to Easter, U.S. Pat.No. 2,932,334 to Steen et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,858,361 to White, U.S.Pat. No. 3,574,965 to Seiger, U.S. Pat. No. 5,850,706 to Evans, U.S.Pat. No. Re. 32,752 to Kiang and U.S. Pat. No. 6,164,004 to Essary).Again, these add weight, require space, and often interfere withoperation of the weapon.

What is missing in the art is a device for protecting weapons that hasnegligible weight, requires essentially no space, does not interferewith the operation of the weapon, is inexpensive to produce anddistribute, and can be easily used with no training. This type of devicecould be indispensable to soldiers in the field, as well as otherweapons users such as hunters and recreational shooters.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The TUBULAR FLEXIBLE WEAPON COVER is essentially a cloth or cloth-likeelastic tube which provides a physical barrier between the weapon andenvironmental dirt, debris and moisture. The TUBULAR FLEXIBLE WEAPONCOVER will prolong the life of the weapon by protecting it from theenvironment, save the weapon operator's time and energy by minimizingthe time required to clean and maintain the weapon, and increase soldiersafety by allowing the soldier access to their weapon without having toremove a cumbersome cover.

The TUBULAR ELASTIC WEAPON COVER is held onto the weapon by the elastictension of the tube itself and/or by cinching means at the ends of thetube. Cinching may be achieved by use of a drawstring, elastic, strapswhich are can be snapped, buttoned or tied, Velcro, or other standardmethod.

The tubular portion of the TUBULAR ELASTIC WEAPON COVER is elastomeric.It may be constructed as a continuous tube or as an elongated piece ofelastomeric material whose longitudinal sides are sewn or otherwiseattached together. In the field the tubular portion may be made bycutting the toe portion off of a sock. The elasticity must be adequateto allow the operator to put on and remove the device easily, but not sostretchy that it does not stay securely on the weapon.

The material comprising the TUBULAR ELASTIC WEAPON COVER should belightweight, and resistant to debris and moisture. Thus, when the coveris on the weapon, the holes in the material must be relatively small.The moisture resistance may be increased by the addition of waterrepellant chemicals, such as ScotchGard®. It must be strong and flexibleenough to be distorted when attachments such as optics, lasers andflashlights are attached to the weapon. Alternatively, a single slit ormultiple slits may be present in the tube to accommodate attachments.

The material should be low volume or compactable so that the TUBULARELASTIC WEAPON COVER may be crumpled up and put into a pocket or othersmall place when not needed. This will also make the invention easy todistribute to soldiers in the field.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will be better understood by a Detailed Description of thePreferred Embodiment, when read in reference to the drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a side view of a weapon with the cover;

FIG. 2 is a side view of the cover;

FIG. 3 is a side view of a weapon and attachment, with the cover;

FIG. 4 is a side view of the cover with a slit for a weapon attachment;

FIG. 5 is a side view of the cover with a means for cinching an end ofthe cover.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring now to the drawings, wherein like numerals reflect likeelements throughout the various figures:

FIG. 1 shows a side view of a weapon with the cover. The distal end ofthe cover 1 is closest to the tip of the weapon barrel, the centerelongated portion of the cover 3 extends along the barrel toward themidsection of the weapon and terminates at the proximal end of the cover2. The cover is tubular and completely encloses the portion of theweapon within the cover.

FIG. 2 shows the cover in detail. The center elongated portion 3terminates at a proximal 1 and distal end 2. The proximal and distalends are identical, and designated as proximal or distal only whenplaced on the weapon, and depending upon their orientation to themidsection of the weapon. The proximal and distal ends are characterizedby termination of the tubular material 4.

The tubular material may be one continuous tube, or formed by a flat andelongated piece of material which has been attached along thelongitudinal edge to form a tube. The means of attaching longitudinaledges may be via sewing or fasteners of other method so long as thelongitudinal edges are permanently bound, and do not effect theflexibility or elasticity of the tube as a whole.

The material comprising the tube may be natural or synthetic fabric,rubber, plastic, a combination thereof, or any other material that meetsthe requirements set forth for elasticity, moisture resistance, weightand compactability.

The material comprising the tube must stretch enough to easily slip overthe barrel of the weapon, but contract enough to fit snugly in place.Moreover, when in place on the weapon, the material must be contractedto the extent that large gaps do not exist which would allow the passageof moisture and debris.

The material must also be moisture resistant. The moisture resistantcharacter of the material may be inherent to the material, for examplerubberized elastic which creates a moisture barrier. Alternatively, themoisture resistant character of the material may arise from treating thematerial with a repellant such as ScotchGard®.

The material must be lightweight and compactable so as not to burdensoldiers with excess weight or volume. It should weigh very little andbe capable of being scrunched up and placed in a pocket or smallcompartment.

The termination of the tubular material 4 is preferably reinforced. Themeans for reinforcement can be stitching around the circumference of theedge or another method such that the elasticity and moisture resistanceis not compromised, but the material of the tube does not unravel orsplit.

FIG. 5 shows a side view of a weapon with the cover. This cover includesa slit for an attachment 5. Slits are an option on the weapon cover.Slits may be desirable or required for weapons which have attachmentswhich connect to the portion of the weapon protected by the cover. Forexample, some weapons have handles, flashlights or scopes which attachto the proximal or mid-portion of the barrel. Where the cover will beused with a weapon which is likely to have an attachment, the cover mayhave one or more slits. The slit for attachment 5 is an example of aslit to accommodate a handle.

It was previously stated that the proximal and distal ends of the cover,2 and 1 respectively, are identical and designated as such onlyaccording to orientation on the weapon. This characterization asidentical probably does not apply if optional slits are on the weaponscover, as a slit is likely to be closer to either the proximal or distalend of the tube.

FIG. 4 shows a weapon cover with an optional slit 5. The slit should belarge enough to accommodate the attachment but small enough to fitsnugly and prevent debris and moisture from coming in contact with theweapon and/or attachment. The slit is preferably reinforced to preventunraveling or splitting of the material. Reinforcement can be achievedby any method which does not compromise elasticity or moisture repellentqualities.

The cover may contain as many slits as desired or necessary toaccommodate the intended attachments.

FIG. 5 shows a weapon cover with an optional cinching means 6 and 7, atthe edge 4. The means depicted in FIG. 5 is a tying drawstring assembly.As shown, a string is weaved in and out of along the circumference ofouter edge of the tube 6. The ends of the string are tied 7. If theoperator pulls the ends of the string 7 tight, the string weaved intothe tube 6 will cinch the tube to the weapon. The cinching assembly isto keep the weapon cover in the desired position on the weapon.

FIG. 5 depicts a drawstring means of cinching the cover, but it isunderstood by those in the art the desired cinching effect could beachieved by other means such as Velcro, snaps, buttons, elastic or ties.Any cinching assembly is acceptable as long as the lightweight,compactability, elasticity and water resistant characteristics of thecover are not compromised.

FIG. 5 depicts the cinching assembly at only one end of the cover. Thecinching assembly may be used at either or both ends.

While the preferred embodiment of the invention has been depicted indetail, modification and adaptations may be made thereto withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the invention as shown in thefollowing claims:

1. A protective cover for a weapon comprising a lightweight, compact,moisture-proof and debris-proof elastomeric tube.
 2. The cover of claim1 wherein said tube is comprised of elastic, natural fabric, syntheticfabric, rubber, plastic or a combination thereof.
 3. The cover of claim1 wherein the circumference of said tube is large enough to slip overthe barrel of weapon yet small enough to fit weapon snugly.
 4. The coverof claim 1 wherein the length of said tube is long enough to conceal theweapon's barrel.
 5. The cover of claim 1 wherein the terminal ends ofsaid tube are reinforced to prevent unraveling, splitting or otherdegradation of material.
 6. The cover of claim 1 wherein at least oneterminal end of said tube comprises means for cinching.
 7. The cover ofclaim 6 wherein said cinching means is achieved by a drawstringassembly, elastic, snap, button, fastener, Velcro or ties.
 8. The coverof claim 1 wherein said tube contains at least one slit to allowconnection of weapon attachments to weapon.
 9. The cover of claim 8wherein said slit or slits are reinforced to prevent unraveling,splitting or other degradation of material.
 10. The cover of claim 8 or9 wherein said slits are large enough to accommodate the attachment butsmall enough to fit snugly and prevent entrance of debris and moisture.11. A method of protecting a weapon against moisture and debriscomprising the steps of removing the toe portion from an elastic sock toform a tube and slipping the tube over the barrel portion of a weapon.12. The protection method of claim 11 wherein said tube is large enoughto slip over barrel of weapon yet small enough to fit weapon snugly. 13.The protection method of claim 11 wherein the length of said tube islong enough to conceal length of barrel portion of weapon.
 14. Theprotection method of claim 11 wherein the terminal ends of said tube arereinforced to prevent unraveling, splitting or other degradation ofmaterial.
 15. The protection method of claim 11 wherein means forcinching is incorporated into at least one terminal end of said tube.16. The protection method of claim 15 wherein said cinching means isachieved by incorporating drawstring assembly, elastic, snap, button,fastener, Velcro or ties.
 17. The protection method of claim 11 whereinat least one slit is made in said tube to allow connection of weaponattachments to weapon.
 18. The protection method of claim 11 whereinsaid slit or slits are reinforced to prevent unraveling, splitting orother degradation of material.
 19. The protection method of claims 17 or18 wherein said slits are large enough to accommodate the attachment butsmall enough to fit snugly and prevent the entrance of debris andmoisture.